Wherever we go, devices are connecting to the Internet wirelessly via Wi-Fi. Because of this prized invention, we are more mobile and spend less on a network infrastructure. With internet speeds on the verge of rising dramatically, it’s vital to use the right wireless hardware to be able fully utilize those higher speeds.

You may not be able to control the type and make of router you use or where it’s placed, but you can always control what wireless receiver you use. There are a handful of different wireless adapters that claim to boost your signal and speed, so we’ve decided to test this by picking up an ASUS USB-N66 Dual-Band Wireless-N900 USB network adapter. At the end of this review, you’ll be able to enter the competition for a chance to win a unit for yourself!

Specifications

The ASUS USB-N66 is a wireless adapter that aims to outperform your current Wi-Fi solution or add a great way to connect your computer to a wireless network if it doesn’t have a wireless adapter. It has the following specifications:

802.11n Wi-Fi

3-point orthogonal antenna arrangement to boost coverage

Up to 450 Mbits via MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) technology

Dual-band support for 2.4 Ghz and 5 Ghz bands

USB 2.0 connection

AP mode to share Internet to other Wi-Fi enabled devices

Turbo switch to boost power

122 x 111 x 62 mm

90 g

Support for Windows, Mac, and Linux

$62.99 at purchase before possible $20 mail-in rebate

Competitors

It has a few competitors that aim to provide the same 802.11n support. You can find the D-Link DWA-162 for just $49.99 but it lacks AP mode and 3×3 MIMO; as well as the Linksys AE3000 for $49.99 which also lacks AP mode. Otherwise, all three of these devices offer the same features and N-900 speeds.

Packaging

The wireless adapter is packaged in a small box which includes the adapter, a USB cable, a manual, and a drivers/utility installation CD; with the adapter itself being wrapped in bubble wrap for protection.

If possible, I’d recommend connecting to the Internet beforehand and downloading the latest drivers/utility. The software on included CDs is usually outdated, and this is already the case.

Design

The design of the wireless adapter is very interesting to look at, and it exudes hope that it could provide some nice speed benefits. It is shaped like a pyramid, where each of the three edges going toward the top vertex contains an antenna. On the underside of these edges, you’ll find blue LED lights that glow blue when the device is plugged in.

Besides that, the USB port and the Turbo Switch are found on one side, and there are holes on the bottom of the adapter which allows you to hang it off of a wall — which is a fantastic idea. The only gripe that I have so far is that the USB cable may be rather short if you plan on mounting the adapter to the wall and connecting to your computer. It really depends on your setup, but I’d imagine that most users will require a longer USB cable for wall mounting. As it’s a basic USB 2.0 A-Male to Mini-B cable, you can easily pick one up yourself from Amazon.

Installation

Installation under Windows and Mac OS X is very easy — just install the drivers and utility, then plug in the adapter. For Windows, you’re able to choose between using just the native Windows network manager, or ASUS’ utility instead. This preference is up to you, but enabling AP mode (to share your Internet connection with other Wi-Fi-enabled devices) ASUS’s utility is much easier.

Installation under Linux is rather complicated. If you’re running 32-bit, you’ll need to visit this page and download the RT3573 USB drivers (as the ones found on ASUS’s support page are outdated), and then compile and install the drivers yourself. You can do this by doing the following:

Download the drivers

Extract the included folder from the .tar.bz2 to any location

Go into ./os/linux/config.mk, scroll down to HAS_NATIVE_WPA_SUPPLICANT_SUPPORT=n and change to HAS_NATIVE_WPA_SUPPLICANT_SUPPORT=y

Open Terminal and use the cd command to go to it (e.g. cd ./Downloads/<extracted folder name here>)

Run the command: sudo make

Run the command: sudo make install

Run the command: sudo modprobe rt3573sta

If you’re running a 64-bit system, you’ll need to download these drivers instead. This is necessary because the original drivers contain a bug that plagues 64-bit systems. A developer took the code and patched it up, which is why you’ll need to download these instead. Follow these steps:

Download the drivers by clicking on the ZIP button found right above “branch: master”

Open your terminal and use the cd command to go to it (e.g. cd ./Downloads/rt3573sta-master)

Run the command: sudo make

Run the command: sudo make install

Run the command: sudo modprobe rt3573sta

Performance

Wireless performance is definitely impressive. It provides great speed and strong signal, which means that it does exactly what it’s meant to do. However, turning on Turbo Mode provided no noticeable differences. Additionally, compared to my Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6235 wireless chipset that came with my laptop, I don’t notice any differences — they perform virtually identically. This is also probably because most wireless hardware usually maxes out at N-300 speeds. In order to really achieve faster speeds, you’d need to pair it up with an N-900 capable router.

However, compared to basic wireless chipsets, I’d expect a decent signal gain of up to roughly 10 dbm. Of course, actual Internet performance will still depend on your connection speed.

AP Mode

The Access Point mode on the device would be extremely useful for sharing your Internet wirelessly with other devices. A good example of where AP mode is useful is when you only have an ethernet connection and would like to share that connection wirelessly. The Turbo Switch also applies to the AP mode in order to boost the signal that it sends out. In theory, it’s a very nice setup.

In theory. I tried setting up AP mode using the utility, and it kept freezing on my Windows 8 system. I was also unable to get it to work under Ubuntu. So as far as I can tell, AP mode doesn’t work.

Utility

The utility itself provides little functionality besides network selection, a few statistics, and the AP mode under Configuration. It’d be nice to see a few more features. It is a bit hard to understand and navigate, so I’m not a big fan of using it. I was also unable to connect to a wireless network without having to resort to the Windows network manager instead. In other words, the utility was useless other than the statistics it provided about my connection and the signal strength of other networks.

Other Complaints

Besides the fact that the utility isn’t easy to work with and that AP mode doesn’t work, I have a few more complaints. It’s a solid wireless adapter that does its job of receiving wireless signals very well. However, it probably won’t be used to its full potential for two reasons — you can only realize the higher speeds if you pair the wireless adapter with an N-900 capable router, and the USB 2.0 connection throttles the 900 Mbps connection down to 450 Mbps anyways. ASUS probably should have gone with a USB 3.0 connector to actually use all 900 Mbps.

So in the end, is it worth getting it? I wouldn’t really recommend it. While it’s nice to have AP mode, it’d be nicer if it actually worked. Instead, it works as a performance wireless receiver, and nothing more. You can get similar hardware from other manufacturers for cheaper, and without all the hype.

MakeUseOf Recommends: Do not buy, as it’s hard to configure and some features don’t work. There are cheaper options available that do what they’re meant to.

If you’re still interested in trying the ASUS USB-N66 out yourself, we’re giving this review unit away!

How do I win the ASUS USB-N66 wireless network adapter?

We have a new giveaway procedure in place, which will hopefully make participating much easier. You may enter using your Facebook credentials (which will require you to sign into Facebook) or by submitting your name and email address. You’ll receive one entry simply by doing so.

After that, you’ll also be offered various methods to earn additional entries. They range from sharing a link to this giveaway on social networks; to commenting or visiting a specific page. The more you participate, the higher your chances of winning!

The giveaway is over. Congratulations, Justin Gibson! You would have received an email from jackson@makeuseof.com. Please respond before August 4 to claim your prize. Enquires beyond this date will not be entertained.

Yeah, I’d win it. AP should’ve been fixed before release. Change model name to include 450 (vs. 900) – or – change to USB3. This would have clinched this as a real powerhouse, because new laptops might benefit from the capabilities of an item like this. And high-end laptop owners may want the fastest possible wireless (e.g. Netflix HD + other downloads)

I've been in situations where a more powerful router won't help signal interference, an externally mounted "SR600EX" from WalMart.com couldn't break through the electrical interference. However, a completely wired system with an external antenna for pick-up did....

Despite its flaws, I would still like to win the ASUS USB-N66 because even though it has some major flaws they might be (might not be) worked out later on. Also, even though the AP did not work when it was tested doesnt mean that it is broken. I'd like to test it out for myself on a system that is not Windows 8 -_-

Despite its flaws, I would still like to win the ASUS USB-N66 because...it looks cool, It's better than what I currently use, and (while I'm not positive) I fairly sure I can get DD-WRT on it and make it much more usable!

Our current wireless adapter is not working consistently, so we have begun looking for a new one. It's hard to find one that has the signal strength we need so that we can access it anywhere in our large yard. This one sounds like it would do the trick!

Despite its flaws, I would still like to win the ASUS USB-N66 because...

My parents have my old D-Link GamerLounge 4500 and I would like for them to get something that is more reliable for their 3400 ft^2 ranch style home with wireless coverage all over the house, without having to use a dual AP / add a repeater to their setup.

Because I would like a model of the Los Angeles Airport that glowed in the dark and gave off signals.Then my alien brothers could find me and take me home, its been so long waiting for home cooked food.

Despite its flaws, I would still like to win the ASUS USB-N66 because I would like to see if it improves wifi reception around our house where it is weak or seems to be a dead spot. We have ASUS laptops.

Flaws, sure, but makeuseof is giving it away, ASUS has a tendency to fix things eventually, and a free wireless adaptor is certainly better than being out of pocket for one, especially if the flaws are with the higher end features, not the wireless connection.

Besides, there's so many entries I seriously doubt I even have a chance to win, so it's just for the fun of playing along anyway.

Because i really really need it, i have bunch of wifi devices in my home and im having a very old wireless router which causes alot of missing packets etc. this could be a very good replacement, besides it looks so cool :)

I can work without the AP mode and I live in an RV and the design of it would fit better on the shelf I have with the limited space of a 5th Wheel rv. It also would come in handy when we go to rv campgrounds that have limited internet.

Despite its flaws, I would still like to win the ASUS USB-N66 because...it simply looks good, like kinda' simi-futuristic (and that makes it look supa-cool) plus it's wireless, and i'd like to take that wireless plunge

I have too many devices that try to connect for streaming content on a lowly Cisco E-1200. Although there are issues, but much of them I would not notice or use, I just want a faster connecting router.

Contrary to all the people thinking this is a ROUTER (it's not), I would be using this to catch a network signal for my notebook and tablet outside, as their built in antennas don't pick up the signal there very well. I can plug this in inside the house and run a cord outside when I need to use the notebook or tablet out there.

Despite it's flaws, I would still be super excited to win the ASUS USB N66 simply because my current router cannot level with it. Keeps cutting me out and signal isn't in a long range. Upon reading the review, looks good to me. And what more could you ask for when you'll be getting it for free. Supposed I win (:

I would still like to win this as it can't be as bad as my current wireless reciever. I would like to win so as to test the product and it would be best if its not at my expenses!!! Thank you if you chose me!!

My girlfriend would love to surf the web from the bottom of the garden and hopefully this Asus would reach that far. Which means, while she is down there, I will be undisturbed in the house on Xbox. Result!

Despite its flaws, I would still like to win the ASUS USB-N66 because...
I have several Access Points in my home that have far more flaws, and would love to have such a quality product as a replacement. Thanks MakeUseOf!

I am using several Asus product and I believe in it. And said this hard to configure and some function didnt work, I believe the basic wireless function still working and really like to try how hard is the configuration :)

Despite its flaws, I would still like to win the ASUS USB-N66 because it will help out with blocking the wireless connections around me and putting mine on a different frequency allowing it to not have interference when trying to connect .

Despite its flaws, I would still like to win the ASUS USB-N66 because i need a new router, my current one has been acting up lately, disconnecting or losing connection, don't know but it's giving me a lot of hard times.

Yeah, I'd win it. AP should've been fixed before release. Change model name to include 450 (vs. 900) - or - change to USB3. This would have clinched this as a real powerhouse, because new laptops might benefit from the capabilities of an item like this. And high-end laptop owners may want the fastest possible wireless (e.g. Netflix HD + other downloads)